Washington, DC — Operation Rescue has issued a statement expressing deep concern over the announcement that the FDA has capitulated to pro-abortion demands and altered the approved use of Mifeprex, (also known as Mifepristone or RU486), to come in line with off-label protocols used by Planned Parenthood and other abortion businesses.

The following statement is attributable to Troy Newman, President, Operation Rescue:

The abortion pill is a huge cash cow for the Abortion Cartel, but the process of abortion using the abortion pill cocktail of two drugs, Mifeprex and Cytotec, is long, painful, bloody, and unpredictable for women and deadly for pre-born children.

Extending the upper recommended gestational limit from 49 to 70 days only ensures that the risk of incomplete abortion will be multiplied, as will the number of women visiting emergency rooms around the country suffering from partial or failed abortions.

Relaxing the usage protocols allows abortion businesses to step up their aggressive marketing of the drug to vulnerable pregnant women and plays into Planned Parenthood’s goal of selling the abortion drug at every one of their outlets, whether their facilities are equipped to cope with known abortion pill complications or not. This creates additional risks to women for the sake of Planned Parenthood’s increased profits.

Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri expanded sales of the abortion pill regimen to their Wichita office earlier this month, which is ill-equipped to treat incomplete abortions or other complications. Licensed physicians who will dispense the abortion drugs hold no local hospital privileges, leaving women to fend for themselves when expected complications arise.

The FDA should be more about protecting the public from exploitative and predatory uses of drugs rather than pandering to Planned Parenthood and the rest of the Abortion Cartel.

Operation Rescue, which is headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, will hold a press conference to address further concerns about the use of abortion drugs, and outside of the Wichita Planned Parenthood office.

Press Conference Details:

When: Thursday, March 31, 2016, at 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.Where: Wichita Health Center Planned Parenthood
2226 E Central, Wichita, KansasWhy: To express concerns about the FDA’s decision to pander to the Abortion Cartel, draw the public’s attention to dangerous abortion practices done by aging abortionists, and to pray for an end to abortion in Wichita and the rest of our nation.

Des Moines, IA – A bill has been introduced in the Iowa Legislature to ban what are known as “telemed” or “webcam” abortions in that state. The bill was introduced by Republican State Rep. Matt Windschitl and 18 co-sponsors.

“If I could stop all abortion in this state, I would,” Windschitl told the Des Moines Register.

“Operation Rescue supports this bill will protect women and babies by halting the dangerous webcam abortion scheme in Iowa. We stand ready to assist, if called upon,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

There have been attempts to ban the abortion pill distribution scheme since 2010 when Operation Rescue released an investigative exposé on the experimental practice developed by Planned Parenthood of the Heartland. While there was popular support for ending the webcam experiment, efforts to end it were initially rebuffed by the Iowa Board of Medicine. At that time, the IBM, as well as the Governor and State Attorney General’s offices were occupied by pro-abortion Democrats that rejected efforts to protect women from Planned Parenthood’s below-standard-of-care practice.

Last year, at the request of 14 Iowa physicians, the Iowa Board of Medicine – now completely revamped by pro-life Republican Gov. Terry Branstad — voted to adopt regulations to halt the practice of dispensing abortion pills to patients without the presence of a licensed physician. Planned Parenthood successfully sued to block implementation of the new regulations and continues to dangerously dispense abortion drugs to women who never receive a physical exam or follow-up from a doctor.

The fact that the Board regulations are tied up in court prompted the introduction of the new legislation.

“I appreciate the separation of the judicial, executive and legislative branches,” Windschitl told reporters. “As a member of the legislative branch, I’m doing what I know to be correct and right.”

During the webcam abortion process, an abortionist briefly interviews abortion patients, who are at another clinic, over an internet videoconferencing connection. The abortionist then dispenses the pills by pressing a button on a computer screen that releases a drawer at the outlying clinic containing the abortion drugs. The women are sent home to complete the long, painful, and bloody abortion process at home in an unmonitored environment.

Webcam abortions created the possibility of dramatically increasing revenue for Planned Parenthood by reducing the number of abortionists on staff while expanding abortion services into cities where Planned Parenthood maintained offices. But its plans of abortion expansion and big profits have simply not materialized.

Since Planned Parenthood first began experimenting with the internet abortion pill dispensing process in 2008, the number of medication abortions has not experienced the expected increase, The number of medication abortions has remained relatively steady since the advent of webcam abortions in Iowa. Meanwhile surgical abortions dropped by almost half.

In fact, the overall number of abortions in Iowa has actually decreased by a surprising 30% since 2007, the year before the introduction of webcam abortions, despite the scheme to increase abortion availability.

Source: Iowa Department of Health

Operation Rescue’s exposé alerting the nation to Planned Parenthood’s webcam abortion scheme and its 5-year plan to put the system in every Planned Parenthood office in the country, 14 states have passed restrictions that require a licensed physician be present when abortion pills are dispensed, effectively banning the process of webcam abortion process. The planned national expansion of the webcam system has since been scuttled.

“In a climate of increased pro-life sentiment and decreased demand for abortion, losing the webcam ‘cash cow’ has been a financial blow to Planned Parenthood,” said Newman. “We are proud of our work in exposing Planned Parenthood’s webcam abortion pill scam and appreciate the work of Iowa Right to Life in their persistence in opposing this dangerous abortion process. The passage and implementation of this legislation will undoubtedly save lives and will represent a huge victory for women and their babies. We encourage Iowa lawmakers to move it quickly through the system.”

Operation Rescue files complaint against clinic for advertising surgical abortions without being licensed to do them. RU-486 abortion pills already being dispensed.

By Cheryl Sullenger

Akron, OH – A former Planned Parenthood abortionist who is responsible for nearly 41% of medication abortion complications in Ohio has reopened and renamed an abortion clinic closed by the state last year for serious health and safety code violations that went uncorrected.

David M. Burkons continues to dispense RU-486 abortion pills at the former Capital Care Network — now named the Northeast Ohio Women’s Center — in Cuyahoga Falls, outside Akron, Ohio. He has filed an application to obtain a license to conduct surgical abortions with the Ohio Department of Health, which discovered 34 pages of deficiencies at that facility in February, 2013, and ordered it closed in April after the deficiencies went uncorrected.

Violations that posed a danger to the public included:

• Hiring employees who lacked training and proper qualifications.
• Unqualified employees routinely dispensing controlled substances to patients.
• Logs for controlled substances not properly maintained.
• Missing drugs.
• Expired pharmacy license.
• Shoddy lab practices resulting in dubious test results.
• Failure to maintain proper sanitizing methods in surgical areas.
• Illegible or incomplete medical records that revealed a lack of patient monitoring.
• Lack of evidence of informed consent.
• No evidence that some sedated patients had transportation by another person as required upon discharge.
• No Registered Nurse assigned to surgery as required, affecting at least 19 patients.
• Lack of mandatory Advance Life Support Certification for surgical and recovery room employees.
• Failure to maintain a “Quality Assurance” program at the facility.
• Lack of new employee training and staff evaluations.
• Lack of infection control training.
• Lack of a tuberculosis control plan.
• Employee time card irregularities lending to conditions ripe for financial malfeasance.
• Failure to provide credentialing information for one abortion provider.
• Complicated lock on the exit door used for emergencies which could delay emergency care.

“Burkons worked part time at the facility at the time when the deficiencies were discovered. That makes him part of the problem,” said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue. “Burkons has apparently subscribed to the ‘Steven Brigham abortion business model.’ Like Burkons, when Brigham’s abortion clinics were busted and shut down for being unsafe, he merely reopened them under another name and kept doing business as usual.”

In fact, similarities of Burkon’s operation to shoddy practices employed by the notorious New Jersey abortionist Steven Chase Brigham are troubling.

After Brigham was ordered to close abortion clinics he operated in Pennsylvania, like Burkons, he formed a new company and distanced it from his original operation, yet continued to solicit business for those clinics on his central business web site. Just last year, Brigham opened an abortion clinic in Philadelphia under yet another name, but was forced to close it once his connections to the clinic were discovered.

Burkons continues to operate what he now calls the Northeast Ohio Women’s Center through a new LLC filed with the Secretary of State in December, 2013. However, Burkons continues to use the old Capital Care Network phone number and his clinic continues to be advertised on the Capital Care Network web site. Both Brigham and Burkons claim their reopened clinics are “unaffiliated” from the old abortion business, an excuse the State of Pennsylvania rejected in Brigham’s case.

Burkons occupies the Cuyahoga Falls office under the old Capital Care Network lease, which expires in August, 2014. No new lease was written for Burkons or his Northeast Ohio Women’s Center.

To make matters worse, Operation Rescue discovered that Burkons was advertising surgical abortions on his Northeast Ohio Women’s Center website, which provided appointment information even though he has no license to do such abortions. Operation Rescue filed a complaint with the ODH last month about this deceptive advertising and the possibility that he is conducting illicit secret surgical abortions without a license.

“Authorities have called out Brigham for his deceptive practices in keeping his abortion mills open under the ruse of a new business. That ploy also failed for abortion clinic owner Diane Derzis, whose Birmingham, Alabama, abortion clinic, New Woman All Women, was finally closed down by a judge that also was wise to this deception,” said Newman. “We hope that the Ohio Department of Health sees through this scam and denies Burkons’ license to conduct surgical abortions.”

But even if the ODH denies Burkons surgical abortion facility license, he could continue to dispense the RU-486 abortion pill without any accountability. This could pose a danger to the public since his facility would not have to meet any basic safety requirements whatsoever.

Operation Rescue has obtained 42 “Report of RU-486 Event” reports that were filed with the State Medical Board of Ohio between April, 2011, and February, 2013, noting complications from medication abortions. Of those reports, 17 – or nearly 41% — indicated that the abortionist responsible for these complications over a 16-month period was none other than David Burkons.

“It’s clear that Burkons is operating inside a regulatory gap that needs to be sealed up by Ohio legislators,” said Newman. “With his history of medication abortion complications, there’s no way he should be dishing out abortion pills, especially in a clinic that was reamed by the ODH for serious violations that were never corrected. His dangerous abortion operation should be closed permanently in order to protect women from his Brigham-like risky and deceptive practices.”

Interested citizens may express their concerns about David Burkon’s Northeast Ohio Women’s Center abortion clinic to the Ohio Department of Health.

[Thanks to Denise Leipold, Executive Director, Right to Life of Northeast Ohio, and Denver Sallee, Co-Chairman HELP the Pro-Life Apostolate and President Lake County Right to Life for providing information for this report.]

New York City, NY – Today’s edition of the New York Times features an article about “telemed” abortions in Iowa. The article quotes Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

Of course, Planned Parenthood officials extol the supposed virtues of remote-controlled push button abortions, but Newman warns that not only is this new abortion pill scheme unsafe, but is likely illegal.

Des Moines, IA – Operation Rescue has been notified in writing that the Iowa Medical Board is now investigating the “care and treatment” practices of abortionist Susan Haskell and Planned Parenthood of the Heartland. The investigation is in response to complaints filed by Operation Rescue Senior Policy Advisor Cheryl Sullenger concerning “Telemed” abortions.

“Telemed” is short for telemedicine, a practice when the patient consults with a physician over the Internet via Skype or other teleconferencing hook-up.

Operation Rescue investigators found that a dozen small Planned Parenthood offices in Iowa were administering the dangerous abortion drug, RU 486, without the patient ever having been personally examined by a physician. Instead, an abortionist briefly addresses abortion patients from a teleconferencing hook up from her office in Des Moines. After explaining the medical abortion process, a button is pushed and an electronic drawer opens that contains the drugs.

“We believe that this practice is illegal and violates Iowa law that requires that a licensed physician perform abortions in that state, and increases the serious dangers to the public,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

It was also discovered that Planned Parenthood deviates from the FDA protocols in both dosage and number of recommended office visits. The abortion patient never has personal access to a licensed physician, even for follow-up. Insurance companies are charged $1,000 for the procedure, twice the cost of cash patients and over 2½ times the national average cost for such abortions, a practice that will drive up insurance costs for everyone.

The abortion pill has a failure rate of 7-20% depending on how it is administered, but with no licensed physician in sight, women are left in a condition that is considered life-threatening. At least 13 women have died from medical abortions and over 1,100 have suffered serious complications.

“Planned Parenthood has come up with a dangerous scheme to peddle abortion pills to women without the cost of transporting a licensed physician to each clinic. Without enough abortionists to staff all of their clinics, this ‘telemed’ scheme is the goose that laid the golden egg for them. Never mind that it is a serious danger to women and to the economics of this country, especially if it expands nationally,” said Newman.

“We pray that the Iowa Board of Medicine will bring this outrageous abortion abuse to an end.”